No permanent faculty at BU Genetics Centre
The Centre for Applied Genetics at Bangalore University is in shambles. The centre, set up in the 1970s at the University’s Jnanabharati Campus doesn’t have a single permanent faculty to guide students in academics and research.
While a few professors from the Zoology Department and visiting faculty take classes for the postgraduate students, research scholars often depend on the co-ordinator of the department for guidance.
N J Shetty, who works as an emeritus professor after his retirement, said the centre was set up mainly to promote genetic, biochemical and cytogenetic research. In 1990s, an MSc in Applied Genetics was introduced, followed by MPhil and PhD courses.
Subsequently, genetics was introduced in the late 1990s as a cognate subject at the undergraduate level in the affiliated colleges.
So far, the Centre has carried out many important research projects, including a study on biochemical nature of pesticides. Another study undertaken, on the genetical, biochemical, and cytogenetical changes in resistance of mosquitoes is very important in the study of mosquito-borne diseases, Shetty says.
Currently, there are nearly 30 postgraduate students and four doctoral students in the department. However, the acute shortage of faculty has also prevented the centre from admitting more students for research. "It is extremely important to get specialised faculty for the centre," said a senior professor of Bangalore University.
Though several departments of BU are dependent on the visiting faculty, they did not comment about the effect on quality of education. "There are two emeritus professors and two visiting faculty to teach the students. The retired professors have got expertise in their specific field," said a professor of the Bangalore University.
Even Vice-Chancellor N Prabhu Dev admitted that the centre was suffering as "there has been a general freeze on recruitment of teachers". "Ever since the University Grants Commission's (UGC) revised pay scale came into effect, salaries of teachers have increased drastically. This obviously has forced the Finance Department to tighten its belt," Dev told Deccan Herald.
The V-C recently met Chief Secretary S V Ranganath who promised to grant special exemption to BU. "We hope to recruit teachers in departments which face acute shortage or are without dedicated faculty in mid-January, 2011. However, it will take time to make full-scale recruitment," he added. At present, BU has only 40 per cent teachers. The rest have to be hired on a permanent basis.
